‘A smorgasbord of unlikability’: the authors helping ‘sad girl lit’ grow up

In this post-Fleabag world, publishing has become obsessed with the inner turmoils of messy millennials – but isn’t it time they pulled themselves together? Meet the novelists subverting the clichesYou’ve probably come across this woman: she is unfulfilled in her career, has been abandoned by at least one man, she is aimless and lamenting the obstacles in her life (of which, in reality, there don’t appear to be many). She is not just miserable, she’s a mess; self-absorbed and full of self-loathing.If you’ve read a book by a woman, about a woman, that has been published in the last five years, then it’s overwhelmingly likely that this woman was the protagonist. The narrative likely circled around this character’s sadness, her passive struggle to overcome it, and little else. Typically, such stories have notes of darkness but will rarely deliver the actual thing. Usually the main character (like the author) will be middle-class, if not incredibly wealthy. Almost always she will be white. The book’s cover will probably feature a devastated-looking woman with her hair covering her face or her head cradled in her hands. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2023-08-08 15:19:43 UTC ]
News tagged with: #ve read #main character #rarely deliver #novelists

Other Publishing stories related to: '‘A smorgasbord of unlikability’: the authors helping ‘sad girl lit’ grow up'


'American Prometheus' Author Kai Bird Named 2024 BIO Award Winner

Bird is the award-winning author of seven books, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning book that served as the basis for Christopher Nolan’s film 'Oppenheimer,' which won seven Academy Awards last night, including best picture. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-03-11 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Lit Hub Daily: March 8, 2024

“I am fascinated by the mismatch of these two systems, the fact that we can occupy two temporal spaces simultaneously…” Grace Loh Prasad on finding meaning in the space between Chinese and Western astrology, and what it means to remember her translator father. |  Lit Hub Memoir Jennifer Croft on... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-03-08 11:30:08 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘The Enigma Girls,’ by Candace Fleming

Britain’s youngest code-breakers, brought to life in a new nonfiction book by Candace Fleming, were normal teenagers: playing pranks, attending dances. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2024-03-08 10:01:52 UTC ]
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Entangled Adds 12 Authors to Its Amara Imprint

Rebecca Yarros's publisher, Entangled Publishing, has signed agreements with 12 self-published romance authors to acquire print rights to their bestselling e-books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-03-08 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Three Publishing Veterans Form a New House, Authors Equity

Madeline McIntosh, Nina von Moltke, and Don Weisberg—most recently at Penguin Random House US and Macmillan, respectively—have joined forces to form a new publishing company. As its name implies, the publisher will operate outside of traditional publishing business models. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-03-05 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Hundreds of KidLit authors are calling out the SCBWI for its Gaza silence.

Over 500 members of the KidLit community—including Sabaa Tahir, Angie Thomas, and Jason Reynolds—have signed an open letter to the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, calling for the organization to break its silence on the ongoing genocide in Gaza, which has so far claimed the... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-03-04 19:00:45 UTC ]
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7 Books By Black Authors That Might Not Be On Your Reading List, But Should Be

“I Don’t Want To Die Poor” author Michael Arceneaux discusses his upcoming book and his fight for representation. Continue reading at HuffPost

[ HuffPost | 2024-03-04 10:45:07 UTC ]
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RuPaul Launches Author-Owned Online Book Marketplace

Allstora, an e-commerce platform with a wholesale membership model, promises to split profits with authors and offer books at steep discounts. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-03-04 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Charli XCX prankster is latest in a long line of authors to fool the public

A writer hoodwinked the internet into thinking the singer nabbed his book title but he’s not the first author to pull a controversial publicity stuntOn Wednesday, writer Gabriel Smith shared what at first glance seemed to be an email sent by the singer Charli XCX, asking if she could use the... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2024-03-01 18:33:32 UTC ]
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Lit Hub Daily: February 29, 2024

“At a time when books are being banned in schools and public libraries in unprecedented numbers, it’s alarming how writers have been reproached simply for signing letters that call for peace.” Maris Kreizman on the Jewish Book Council’s new initiative. | Lit Hub Politics The best book covers in... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-02-29 11:30:17 UTC ]
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Lots of People Make Money on Fanfic. Just Not the Authors

Next year, SenLinYu’s Harry Potter fic Manacled will disappear from Archive of Our Own. They don’t want to take it down, but it’s the only way to keep others from profiting off of the work. Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2024-02-28 20:42:17 UTC ]
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Lit Hub Daily: February 28, 2024

 “These girls thought themselves saints of something, and I nodded and kneeled.” Emmeline Cline on eating disorder memoirs and the contagion of identification. | Lit Hub Memoir Steven W. Thrasher on the murder of journalists in Gaza and the loss of critical American voices in journalism: “What... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-02-28 11:30:35 UTC ]
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Microcosm's Cloud-Based Software Aims to Help Indie Publishers Automate Tasks

Portland, Ore.’s Microcosm Publishing is rolling out WorkingLit, a cloud-based system intended to help small independent publishers streamline their product databases, manage orders, complete accounting and invoicing tasks, and calculate royalties. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-28 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Lit Hub Daily: February 27, 2024

“I was still reporting to my father, the things I had read and all that I had remembered.” Amitava Kumar on family, loss, and resonating with the words of other writers. | Lit Hub Memoir “Even in the worst of times, humans have a way of coming together to lighten the load and provide hope […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-02-27 11:30:51 UTC ]
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Counterfeit Books Are a Growing Problem, but a Solution May Be Near

New tools could finally help publishers stem the flow of counterfeit editions online. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-23 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Counterfeit Books Are a Growing Problem, but a Solution May Be Near

New tools could finally help publishers stem the flow of counterfeit editions online. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-23 05:00:00 UTC ]
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UK’s Society of Authors: More Clarity in Spotify’s Terms

Changes in Spotify's terms of use for its Findaway Voices audiobook product trigger concerns from the Society of Authors in London. The post UK’s Society of Authors: More Clarity in Spotify’s Terms appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-02-22 15:16:42 UTC ]
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Lit Hub Daily: February 22, 2024

What’s Aisha Sabatini Sloan reading? Diana Arterian on the author’s nightstand. | Lit Hub Criticism “The intimacy I feel with what my home once was cannot be reconciled with what downtown has become.” Emma Dries reflects on her childhood home and how 9/11 changed downtown Manhattan forever. |... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-02-22 11:30:18 UTC ]
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Erica Berry on the Polyamorous Intimacy of Reader, Author, and Audiobook Narrator

I always imagined, that, given the choice, I would read my own audiobook. I had heard memoirs often sounded best in the author’s throat—something about the familiar tang of the hardship unspooled. But had I written a memoir? A bookseller acquaintance asked me that a year before the publication... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-02-22 09:54:39 UTC ]
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